We are now Riverboat Pilots and Creek Snugglers...as Kadey Krogen Manatee “Second Star” owners Mike and Jana have already declared.

Skinny water abounds on the Georgia-South Carolina waterways! Our travel days have been centered around HIGH TIDES. Ebbing tides are definitely not a river boatsman’s friend. The Gullah rural Lowcountry sea island communities have long held the belief that the ebb tide has the pull of death. We also much prefer to take care of important business on a coming tide. Due to lack of funding, GA and SC have neglected the dredging of the ICW along their coastlines for many years now. The silt build-up where side tributaries flow into the waterway often leaves only 2,3 or 4 feet of water. “Summertime” has a draft of a mere 3’ 2”... more like a kayak than a trawler... and we’ve scuffed the soft bottom passing through these areas. The water is so thick with particulates that seeing the deeper water, if there is any, is impossible. We are currently on anchor in the South Santee Rr. next to The Cape Romain Nat’l Wildlife Refuge, the greatest natural wildlife area on the Atlantic coast...64,000 acres of dense undergrowth and wetland wilderness. Big rafts of dead cord grass come by us, moved off the shore by the current. Fishing families pull their crab pots in the early morning hours. The green-headed horse flies peer at us through the screening. Life doesn’t get much better than this.

Beautiful Beaufort (BEW-fert), SC is the heart of the Lowcountry with the Sea Islands all around

Walking and using loaner bicycles from Lady’s Island Mariner,

we crossed over the swing bridge

each of the three days of our stay. The shops of local artists and craftspeople are very impressive. We also loved our self-directed tour up-and-down the streets of elegant Southern mansions dating back to the 1700’s and 1800’s. Led by the United States Marine Band of nearby and well-known Parris Island, the Memorial Day Parade lived up to our expectations...floats, classic cars, bands and fire trucks... oh, my!

Hilton Head Island

We have always heard about Hilton Head. It could have been that Wally’s parents came here on a golfing holiday. Or maybe it was one of the many hushed televised PGA tournaments that we watched. “Summertime” is on a side-tie at Skull Creek Marina located on the NE corner of Hilton Head Island in the midst of the Hilton Head Plantation...one of many.

The nearby community gardens were already lush!

From this marina we have been able to bike along the 10-mile meandering Leisure Path that connects neighborhood after neighborhood within the plantations. Yes, we’ve also pedaled past many golf courses, each with its own fancy Club House. The first day we pedaled five miles for ice cream. The second day it was three miles to The Coastal Discovery Museum in the Honey Horn Plantation. Indoor and outdoor venues brought alive the culture, history and environmental aspects of the area. Two rare Marsh Tacky horses, especially bred to be stocky and sure-footed in the marshes, were grazing on the property. Very impressive all around.

Memorable moments on the water

We had a little excitement on our trip from Savannah to Hilton Head. We first came upon a sailboat who had run aground in the channel. We attempted to slide by as we turned toward the center of the channel, but that was not to be. Summertime went from 6.6kts to zero... our first soft grounding! By quickly shifting into reverse, Wally luckily backed us off. We dodged into the narrow slice of water closer to shore and found the deeper water.The sailors freed their boat soon after. Further along, as the ICW crossed the Savannah River, we met our first container ship leaving Savannah headed for the ocean. That commercial vessel was 400 feet long moving along at 12mph. We are 36 feet long with 7mph being our top speed. We yielded to his request, waited for him to clear the ICW and passed behind!

Seeing Savannah for the first time

As RVers, Wally and I spent 15 years poking around in lots of special places. Somehow we missed Savannah. We chose to stage our visit to that venerable city from the Thunderbolt Marina located on the ICW 5 miles SE of Savannah. We would need to join the locals on the bus system in order to stay out of the heavy commercial container ship traffic plying the Savannah River. As the Maptech Cruising Guide suggested, “Savannah has scores of historic attractions, but before you head to a museum or restored home, walk the city streets and soak up the atmosphere in either or both of Savannah’s liveliest neighbors- the waterfront and the City Market section.” One Day 1, we did exactly that. The bus drivers helped us make the transfers that dropped us right in the key downtown area...and we got to see 5 miles of wonderful family neighborhoods shaded by live oaks draped in Spanish moss. Twenty-one pocket parks provide cool spots for leisure lounging amidst gorgeous mansions from days long-gone by. By Day 2, we were ready to visit the Mercer-Williams House Museum which played a major role in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil book and movie. Darcy read the book while we were in Atlanta with Erin and her family. The tour of the house portrayed an antiseptic view of the actual happenings, yet still provided a captivating story of the life of a mover and shaker in the restoration of Savannah’s oldest homes throughout the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. We even lunched at Forsyth Park where Darcy’s dad bivouacked in the early 1940’s as his outfit moved from one Army Camp to another. We could just imagine the tent city that sprang up on the spacious lawns that were surrounded by fountains, statues and walkways, and now the addition of playgrounds and and a lovely cafe/plaza. One thing we are sure of, we have just barely scratched the surface... we shall return!

Reunions abound on the waterway

We’re not sure why boat people connect so easily and quickly along the waterway. We had only heard Ron’s voice chatting now and then and we had seen “Companion” off our stern for five hours on one day of our travels. But when we came around the bend into Thunderbolt Marina two days later, we felt like we had been reunited with long-lost friends when we saw “Companion” on the face dock next to where we were slated to tie up!

As soon as “Summertime” was made secure to the dock, we exchanged hugs and the four of us began asking a million questions of each other. With re-provisioning and laundry chores taking up the afternoon, we made plans to re-group, tour each others boats in the evening and then travel together in a taxi to the Six Pence British Pub...a favorite of theirs... on the corner of Bull and Liberty Streets in downtown Savannah. Ron and Kathrin had both been taking photos of “Summertime” as we cruised ahead of them down the waterway, so we reciprocated with photos of “Companion”. The resulting shots were priceless because you rarely see your own boat underway. Our server at the pub did the honors so we could all be in the photo together. Who knows when our paths will cross again,

but we parted (after the warm Krispy Kreme doughnuts were delivered to our boats early the next morning) with an exchange of e-mail addresses and a fond “See you along the way”. And it’s pretty likely that we will!

“On the road...ahem, waterway...again!

Traveling the coast of Georgia on the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) is a twisty-turny affair. At 7 miles an hour...your fast-paced walk...it takes three six-hour days of chugging to get from St. Mary’s to Savannah. The marsh land stretches out on both sides with creeks and fingerlets of water winding off into nowhere or somewhere every so often. After departing Brunswick Landing Marina, with its protected docks and welcoming atmosphere, we had three anchoring choices ahead of us. The marinas along that section are rustic and well off the ICW down some of those creeks. A 5-mile side-trip is maybe not the best plan for making progress.

It actually becomes a 10 mile detour! Two shrimp boats came out of one of those side creeks. It was a bit intimidating to share a confined space with the wings that extend far out on each side of these sizable work boats. We passed by two of the recommended anchoring spots because it was too early in the day. When we turned into the Wahoo River, we parted ways with a 40’ Heritage East Trawler “Companion” that had fallen in behind us early in the day.

Ron and Kathrin had been good company as we chatted on the VHF working channel through out the day. We had just begun to make our way up the Wahoo when we were greeted by a pod of dolphins. They escorted us up around the first bend in the river and we dropped anchor in their midst. Fantastic! The green-bodied horse flies that arrived in droves as the evening sky began to pink were not so fantastic. The screens protecting “the back porch” were our saving grace. Through them we were able to watch a mother wild pig and her four piglets root around on the river back. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Atlanta adventures....

Our 6 hour rental car ride to Atlanta cut a diagonal across Georgia. The southeastern roadways are lined with tree farms growing southern pine for the local production of pulp and paper, pallets and telephone poles. It was encouraging to see industry flourishing with renewable resources. We were welcomed to our “home-away-from-home” with balloon-bedecked poems on the mailbox. Emily(7) and Bailey(41/2) really know how to make Nan and Pop feel special! Erin and Brett have opened up the center of their Craftsman Bungalow home by removing some partitions and doorways and adding some drop lighting. It’s remarkable how much more useable the space is now. Erin always has a found-item project underway. She has recently rescued and restored a dining table and chairs. They are so attractive and comfortable. We are always impressed by her boundless enthusiasm for her home, her children, her husband and her extended family. Wally built a chicken tractor. It allows the three chickens to be able to scratch around the yard protected from hawk attacks or too much “attention” from puppy Cupcake. The girls and Cupcake did have to try it out first. Early in our stay, Erin treated us to one of her favorite Atlanta landmarks... Fernbank. It houses an amazing collection of natural history artifacts and great hands-on activities. She also made sure we had our spring pilgrimage to IKEA. You never know what clever space-saving ideas might work on a boat. Swimming at the neighborhood “Y”, walking the girls to the local park, visiting Emily’s school on Cultural Appreciation Day and seeing Bailey’s performance on Celebrate Diversity Day were all highlights of our 10 days. Brett, Emily and Bailey topped off our stay by creating wonderful Mother’s Day wall hangings for Mom and Nan and Grandma featuring the girls posing in the park with the letters LOVE. What a great way to take our sweeties along with us. We are truly blessed with such a loving family!